Zeus placed a guiding hand on Walker's elbow, pulling him more than a few steps away from everyone. When they were a good enough distance that he felt safe in speaking, he looked around once more, then gave the Creator his full attention.
"Before I talk about that...I want to thank you for allowing my brother to live. I am not foolish enough to believe you did this from any form of emotional attachment. I've learned to expect more from you." The bearded god heaved a large sigh, "But still, it is appreciated. And, because of your act of charity, I will explain the final stage."
"The fourth stage," Walker corrected. "I'm pretty sure there are a bunch more after that."
Zeus gave him a curious look, but when Walker didn't expand any more on it, he bent down near an open patch of dirt. Taking a finger, he scrawled out several squiggles, Walker's translator going to work at interpreting for him. When it was done, the first squiggle represented a one.
"The first or internal stage. It is reached when an Awakened begins to initially access the power of their soul, showing a physical change in the color of their eyes. It is the most basic form, and compared to the other stages, the weakest in alterations."
He pointed at the second squiggle, "The second stage, or as we call it, the physical stage. This change is less visually apparent, but no less profound. Your soul is stretched, slowly, and moves from an internal focus to an external. The length of your life extends beyond measure, while the power of your muscles and bones, the tenacity of your skin, all increase dramatically."
"Why do you suddenly sound like you're college educated?" Walker asked.
Zeus gave a thin slit of a smile, "Athena decided that, as a Prime, I am in dire need of an education. She's been holding nightly classes with us since we began the displacement. She felt it was inappropriate for the Primigenials of Earth to have less of an understanding of corporeal things than seemed proper. All of us attend...well, that's not true. All of us except Dionysus, Hades, and Magni from the Nords, although that was not a shock for any of us."
Walker looked over at Athena, receiving a smile when she noticed him watching. He smiled back, then turned toward Zeus as he pointed at the third squiggle.
"Now, the third stage is a little different. I've heard some call it the esoteric stage, while others call it the truth stage. For myself, I prefer the simply named, Iconic stage. You develop and select an Icon. How you go about doing so is different for everyone, but one thing stands out. You find and learn to first access your Icon." He pointed at the lightning bolt pin on his robe, "My Icon specifically grants me control of lightning. When it first represented itself, I could draw lightning from the core of my soul, using it as a weapon and a defense. Once I solidified my control, I no longer needed to drag it out. It is one with me."
He held up a hand, a ball of lightning zipping around it.
"Advancing beyond the third stage is about understanding and connections." The lightning split, cascading into several dots floating over his hand. "The connections are no longer about your history and experiences. It's not about what people see on the surface, but beneath. Your true self. Your oath." The dots connected, forming the self-same lightning bolt shown on his pin, "A third stage Primigenial's oath takes on a form of power, connected to your personal metaphysical space. This is, naturally, done through your Icon." The lightning zipped back into his skin, the tan hue flashing light blue for a moment, before he looked around.
"How much do you trust me, Walker?"
Walker looked from his hand up toward the god's blue, almost white, eyes. "I trust you enough to understand that you'll do anything for the Awakened."
Zeus shook his head, his long beard and hair swishing through the air, "Not all Awakened, necessarily. But my people. I ask because I'm about to show my trust in you. Telling another person your oath can have rather dark consequences. If a person knows your oath, then they can find a way to corrupt it. To force another person into an impossible situation, whereby they must break their oath to survive, or to protect something they cherish. Violating your oath can often leave you powerless, or at the worst of times, quite dead. Each violation shrivels the soul, causing folding collapses where perfection should remain. At the lower stages it is not as apparent, but the higher you move, the more dire the circumstances."
Checking again that nobody was nearby, he leaned closely. Even though it was said with a whisper, something slipped into Walker's mind. A tingle. A world filled with lightning, held together by a man wearing a bright crown.
I will bring balance to nature's order. I will recognize greatness in myself, and in those around me. I will protect the children of my children, and the progeny of my family.
As King, I will uphold the balance of nature, honor greatness as it shows itself, and safeguard my progeny and their legacy.
Walker felt the words wash over him. As Zeus spoke each line, they resonated with a part of himself. Something that went beyond words. Almost a kinship. Walker watched a young boy travel through a field, a giant of a man beside him. Watched a young version of his brother's and sister's as they fought great, monstrous beings. Watched as he screamed when those he'd fought, had helped to raise, perished before his eyes.
When Zeus’s final line struck, years and lands moved across his mind, showing the battles won by the King of the gods and his kin. That is, until a small woman seen in a haze stepped forward. With a wave of her hand, Zeus’s environment changed from the blue of the sky and the green grass beneath his feet to an environment of stone. A great throne now sat beneath him, and ever so slightly, as he sat down with no space in the room for anything else, he felt himself grow weaker.
When Walker opened his eyes, unaware of when he’d closed them, the Book of Souls covered his vision with a new set of white pages. It was only a few, but he knew they held the vision-trek his mind had just gone through. Smiling at his Icon, it moved to the side, showing the tear-covered face of the king of the gods.
“You saw?” He asked in a weak voice.
Walker nodded, “I did. I’ve been thinking about my Icon for a while now. You have the total power of lightning. My Icon, however, moved in a very different direction.” He waved at the Book of Souls floating nearby, receiving a buoyant movement in recognition, “Mine seems to be connected to knowledge. In particular, knowledge of the trials that others have gone through.”
Zeus sat down near the squiggles, Walker moving beside him a moment later, the last stage forgotten in the dirt. Walker looked around. By this point, no one else could be seen, leaving Walker and Zeus alone as the old Primigenial seemed to come to terms with something.
Walker let him. The trauma of being trapped within a stone room for thousands of years had taken a heavy toll on him. He also knew why Zeus felt weaker while sitting on the throne. The Tree of the Gods, Kwaya’s prison, had been draining them. It was still draining many, many more. Walker wasn’t sure how she did so. There had to be something important there—something he could use.
Not for nefarious purposes, of course. He still planned on somehow making Hades’s afterlife. A wonderful vacation for those tired souls who had earned it. But, if Walker could find a way to siphon just a little bit of soul energy from each Awakened, something that wouldn’t hurt them…who knew what he could do then? A few of his plans, the more outrageous and complicated ones, could suddenly be viable.
While he continued to plan out what may be his near future, a shudder ran through the large god’s frame. With a cough and a hand rubbed across a wet face, the man brought himself back in order. “I’m sorry you had to see me like that.”
Walker smiled, “It’s not a problem. You were trapped in that prison for thousands of years. I’d have to be a real shitty guy to look down on you for it. A reaaal dick.” Zeus cracked a small smile, so Walker went for broke to cheer him up. With a perfectly straight face, he looked the king of the gods, the leader of the Greek pantheon, and the master of lightning straight in the eyes, “A shitty dick.”
That got the old man to laugh, slapping a bare knee in the moment.“Thank you. I haven’t laughed for a long time. My wife says my sense of humor is too crude, but I find joy in the simple things that make life so much easier. And when you’ve lived as long as I have, simple joys are some of the best to be found.”
Walker gave him another smile, happy to have a bonding moment with Athena’s father finally. They talked for a few more minutes, Walker telling a few more jokes from his expansive memory and causing the old god to laugh uproariously at the story of a donkey and a dolphin falling in love. He pulled out a cup of wine for himself, a flagon of mead for the older god after a quick check to make sure Hera wasn’t around, and with the ting of glass touching, they drank in companionable silence for a moment as the sounds of the party washed over their ears.
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After what felt like a short amount of time, Zeus spoke up again, “I think you’re doing this whole Creator thing well. I’m happy my daughter could find a partner who is at least half as smart as she is.”
Walker felt a little wine dribble out of the corner of his mouth at the sideways compliment, “Thank you?”
“You’re welcome. Now,” He lifted the flagon, draining the remaining mead in a gulp, before throwing it over his shoulder to litter Sonata’s ground, “let's get back to what we talked about. If I leave Hera alone for much longer, she’ll become wroth with me and I’d rather not have that.”
Walker placed his wine down and listened in, trying not to scold the older man for littering.
“Not many will reach the third stage. Actually,” He pulled his beard a little, “That used to be true. I can feel the souls of others, like most of those who have reached the higher stages, and you have quite a few Founders who may be able to go all the way.”
He still thinks the fourth stage is the final one, Walker thought, but didn’t interrupt. This was valuable information, and he didn’t want a debate right now.
Zeus closed his eyes briefly, then shook his head quickly, “The third stage isn’t like those that came before it. It isn’t about expanding your soul internally anymore. That is now complete. And, from what I can tell, you have a perfectly formed soul. I don’t see a single hole within the tapestry of your body or your Icon. You are guaranteed to reach the fourth stage as long as you can access your domain.”
“Domain?” Walker asked.
Zeus tilted his head, “The great white room. The structure we build in your soul after completing the final internal stage. The seat of your power.”
“Do you mean my metaphysical space?”
Large muscular shoulders moved up and down, “If that is what you would like to call it, one name is as good as any other. In order to advance to the fourth stage, you need to build connections within your domain.”
“Alright, so how do I do that?” Walker asked, leaning forward. Ulysses, Kwaya, and now Zeus had each brought this up, but none had ever explained how to get there. Ulysses pulled him into his with a portal. Kwaya had dragged him in without warning. Accessing his own, though. That he had never done before.
Zeus held up a flat hand, “First, please repay my truth with your own. I would like to know your oath.”
Is it bad if he knows my oath? What could he do?
Walker scratched his chin. He knew he was being rude, but he felt he shouldn’t say anything for some reason. Still floating over his shoulder, the Book of Souls warmed up, showing its agreement. Still, Zeus had shared his. It only felt right that he did so as well. But he needed to ask a question first.
“If I share mine with you, do you promise not to share it with any other?”
The old man cracked a grin, “Smart. Yes, I promise not to share it with any other person, on my oath as the King of the Gods, lest my oath be shattered and my progeny fall from weakness.”
Well, shit, okay.
Walker spoke the words he felt seared into his soul.
I will always strive to be better. I will always grow to build a better future for myself and those around me. And, I will always help those in need.
I will always be better.
As the last words were spoken aloud, a pulse of darkness washed out of Walker, causing Zeus to fall onto his back. He quickly sat up, looking at Walker with big eyes, “Why did your soul do that?”
Walker didn’t know what he was talking about, “What do you mean? It just kind of happens sometimes.”
Zeus shook his head, “It’s not supposed to. Reaching the third stage is supposed to stop all of those small control issues. You are the master of your soul. But that doesn’t seem to be happening.”
Walker scratched the back of his head, “yeah, it’s probably because of that Godeater thing.” He waved his hands quickly at the look on Zeus’s face, “No, no, it’s fine. I’ve got it under control.”
Zeus didn’t look convinced. He stared at Walker’s chest for a long time without moving his eyes before asking, “May I have a look at your Icon, please?”
Walker was taken aback at his request. It felt oddly invasive for some reason. Instinctively, he wanted to say no. Like all Icons as he understood them, the Book of Souls was an integral part of himself—a piece of his soul. But, at the severe look on the old man’s face and thinking about how much he was trying to help Walker at the moment, he couldn’t find a way to rightly refuse him. With a mental nudge from the Creator, the Book of Souls moved toward the king of the gods.
Zeus reached a slow hand out, and with a nod from Walker, lightly touched the Icon. Walker, in a vulnerable state to have someone actively touching the Book of Souls, felt nothing strange at all. It worried him. After closing his eyes and mumbling a few times, Zeus removed his hand, nodding at Walker.
“I would like to tell you that you should have smooth sailing from here, but,” He shook his head, “I cannot do that. You have a problem. I knew little about your Godeater issue from my daughter's words. All she said was that you had some kind of parasite but informed all of us that it wouldn’t spread.” He laughed harshly to himself, “Not that we could do anything if the parasite did cause you to go mad and destroy all of us.” Catching a look in Walker’s eyes, he coughed once, “Sorry. From what little I can feel and from that pulse you sent out, the Godeater thing, as you call it, is blocking you from moving forward. That pulse of energy and the feel of your Icon’s connection tell me quite a bit. I’m going to take a few guesses here, and you let me know if I’m heading in the right direction.”
Walker nodded, “Alright.”
Zeus straightened his back, “You cannot access your domain, can you?”
Walker shook his head once, ‘I don’t know how to.”
The old man sighed, “You should instinctively know how to access your domain the moment you reach the third stage. I’m guessing you cannot imprint your oath and soul into objects either.”
“Kind of,” Walker said while tilting a hand back and forth, “I can infuse some of the systems energy mixed with my soul into objects, but I can’t directly impact that object with, like, a piece of myself.”
This time, Zeus shook his head, “That’s not good.”
“Okay, so what’s the problem then?” Walker asked, unintentionally leaning forward.
“Advancing through the third stage is about empowering your oath and creating connections, as I said earlier. The more closely aligned you stay to your oath, the stronger the connections you make, the greater your power, and the more quickly you move toward the fourth stage. We call the fourth step on the path of the Awakened, the Idol stage. In the stage each prime enters, your Icon directly becomes a part of you. It merges seamlessly into the rest of your soul, as you no longer have an oath; you are the direct embodiment of it.”
He held up a hand, and a collection of sparks pulled itself out of the skin of his palm. The white and blue elements gathered until they formed the same image that had always represented Zeus in the myths of history. A solid white and blue jagged bolt appeared, as solid as anything else. With a smirk, Zeus tossed it over to Walker, who easily caught it in his hands.
He could feel…something. Not just the tingles that erupted across his flesh at holding the Icon, but something more. Power, but tempered by history and sacrifice. A need to protect.
“That is my Idol in your hands. Even if you collapse and destroy the power it contains, I will suffer no significant loss. My power will simply be weaker for a time, not unlike how we all felt upon first being released from the Tree of the Gods. That bolt, my Icon, is no longer the controlling factor of my power. I am. That’s the strength of the fourth stage. But, and believe it or not I am sad to say this; I do not think you will ever reach it.”
Walker handed the Icon back to the king of the gods, not surprised to see it break down into sparks before reabsorbing itself into his hands.
“Why do you say that?”
“This is still guesswork on my part, Walker. But, I believe the parasite that has bound itself to your soul is actively blocking you from the power you should rightly hold.” He nodded to the Book of Souls floating nearby, “Your Icon is powerful, it truly is. I can feel the hope of what it contains. The will to be better. Stronger. Smarter. To push your limits and help others to do the same. It is the most perfect Icon and power I can imagine for a Creator to obtain. And yet, it is weak. Contained and restricted. You should feel boundless energy, but why do I sense that behind those strange eyes of yours is a tired soul.”
Walker hadn’t noticed it before, but he was right. He was tired. His body felt wrung out, like he’d stretched too long in the hot sun and was just waking up. Had he felt like this for a long time? He remembered before that reaching each new stage had filled him with energy, like the old man was talking about. He didn’t remember having that feeling when reaching the third stage. Was the Godeater parasite holding him back that much?
Walker rubbed his eyes, “You may be right. I do feel tired. Maybe I won’t ever reach the fourth stage. Maybe this parasite will kill me in the end. But that’s not going to stop me.”
Zeus gave a blinding smile, “I never said it would. You have a unique resilience, Walker. One I’ve rarely, if ever, seen. It reminds me of my son, Heracles. He, too, couldn’t stand restrictions on the soul.” He stood up, brushing imaginary dirt off of his clothes, before reaching a hand down. Walker looked at his hand and recognized it for what it was. He reached out a hand in turn, allowing the old man to easily pull him up with a hop in his step. With a hard slap on his back and without saying anything, the two men began to walk toward the end of the party.
Walker heard the sounds of loud revelry begin to reach his ears before he asked, “By the way, how do you advance in the fourth stage? I’m just curious.”
Zeus looked at him, matching his pace step for step. “For that, Walker, you will just have to see. Perhaps that can be a worthy goal for the man who can build worlds—to reach the fourth stage.”
Walker nodded, and they continued walking in companionable silence, the sound of the party already beginning to override his thoughts—all except for one.
I’m going to kill this fucking parasite.